Mahabharata — Anushasana Parva, Shloka 126
Ahiṃsā as Threefold Restraint (Mind–Speech–Action) and the Ethics of Consumption
पापानि तु नरा: कृत्वा तिर्यग् जायन्ति भारत । न चात्मन: प्रमाणं ते धर्म जानन्ति किंचन
pāpāni tu narāḥ kṛtvā tiryag jāyanti bhārata | na cātmanaḥ pramāṇaṃ te dharma jānanti kiṃcana, bhārata ||
尤提士提罗说道：“噢，婆罗多啊，人们造作罪业之后，便投生于下等种类（禽兽之中）。在那里，他们不再具备可靠的自我引导与辨别之力，对达摩——使自身得以提升之道——更是一无所知。”
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
Sinful actions can lead to rebirth in lower forms of life, where the capacity for moral discernment and conscious pursuit of dharma is greatly diminished; therefore one should avoid pāpa and cultivate dharma while human.
In the Anuśāsana Parva’s instruction on dharma, Yudhiṣṭhira articulates a moral consequence of wrongdoing: those who commit sins may fall into animal birth, a state in which they lack the reflective knowledge and guidance needed for self-uplift through dharma.